For decades, scientists hoping to understand how the retina interprets visual input have often had to resort to invasive techniques to dissect the retina from the animal in an effort to record the cells' activity, but a new system could make it possible to track the firing patterns of dozens of cells chronically in awake animals. Read more at Smithsonian.com.

Up to 50% of women skip potentially life-saving mammograms often because the procedure can cause extreme discomfort and pain. Now researchers have developed a painless, light-based, non-radioactive, 15-second procedure that could revolutionize breast cancer screening and save lives.

A new microscope system can image living tissue in real time and in molecular detail, without any chemicals or dyes. It enables researchers to study concurrent processes within cells and tissue, and could give cancer researchers a new tool for tracking tumor progression and physicians new technology for tissue pathology and diagnostics. Read more from the Illinois News Bureau.

Two NIBIB-funded biomedical engineers were named 2018-2019 Science Envoys by the U.S. State Department. Dr. Rebecca Richards-Kortum at Rice University and Dr. Robert Langer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are two of five distinguished scientists and engineers selected to the U.S. Science Envoy Program.

For women over 40, mammography is a necessary yet annoying procedure to endure every year or two. The technique, while valuable for reducing breast cancer deaths, is less than ideal because it exposes patients to X-ray radiation and requires their breasts to be painfully squished between plates. The plates flatten the breast so the X-rays can more easily pass through it and produce a clear image. Read more at Caltech News.

Researchers funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering have developed a portable, non-invasive monitor that can determine, in one minute and without drawing blood, whether chemotherapy patients have a reduced number of white blood cells that could lead to infections.

Researchers funded by NIBIB have launched a six-month pilot study in Lima, Peru, using smartphones and computer-aided tools to rapidly screen people for TB. The smartphone-based system will shorten the wait time for diagnosis from weeks to hours. Rapid diagnosis, in turn, will reduce the transmission of TB to others and hasten the start of medications.

Chronic conditions including obesity, cardiovascular disease, and cancer often begin with early, subtle changes in cellular metabolism. Now researchers at Tufts University have developed a non-invasive optical imaging technique that detects these changes, providing an early window of opportunity for new research and potential therapeutic development.

The mission of the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) is to improve health by leading the development and accelerating the application of biomedical technologies. The Institute is committed to integrating the physical and engineering sciences with the life sciences to advance basic research and medical care.